ACF Asks FG to Take Action against IPOB’s Activities in South-east

John Shiklam in Kaduna

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has urged the federal government to take drastic action against activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the South-east geopolitical zone.

• This is as Southern Kaduna Christian Leaders Association has said the area is under siege by terrorists with no clear-cut leadership direction for the people.

A chieftain of the forum, Alhaji Musa Saidu, said this in a statement in Abuja yesterday.

Saidu also the leader of the Arewa community South-south and South-east, said the government must find lasting solutions to the nefarious activities of the group.

“The federal government must take necessary action against IPOB, the situation is getting out of hand, many innocent people are being attacked daily by the group in South East

“We have documentary evidence on killings by IPOB across the South-east from 1992 to date and most of the victims are our people, the security agencies are aware of this.

“The federal government must take action against the group,’’ he said. Saidu, also a human rights activist, referred to the killing of a lady Mrs Fatima Jubril by gunmen suspected to be members of the group. “We condemn in total, the cold blood murder of Fatima Jubril and her four children and we urge security agencies to go after the killers. “The lady was killed without any provocation.

“We call on the Anambra government to pay compensation to her family and ensure that the killers are brought to book.

“The federal government must also take necessary action against IPOB, the situation is getting out of hand, as such immediate action must be taken to prevent reprisal,’’ he said.

Saidu lauded President Muhammadu Buhari for condemning the killing.

“We commend Buhari for the verbal condemnation, but this is not enough, he must take necessary actions to stop reoccurring attacks on northerners by IPOB,” he said.

“The Arewa community in the South has lodged several complaints on persistent IPOB attacks on Northerners in South-east without response.

“We have reached out to the Northern Governors Forum, the Sultan of Sokoto and some eminent Northern elders, but the situation has contin-ued unabated.

“ We believed in the unity of this country, therefore, we are appealing to our people to remain calm and law-abiding,’’ he said.

Musa said however, that the security agencies had assured of taking necessary measures to address the situation.

“We met with police commissioners in some states in the South-east on the situation and they promised to address the situation by stepping up security in the states,” he added.

Menawhile, the Southern Kaduna Christian Leaders Association has said the area is under siege by terrorists with no clear-cut leadership direction for the people in the midst of the insecurity which has bedevilled the area in the past two years.

This is contained in a communiqué signed by the Chairman of the Asso-ciation, Apostle Emmanuel Kure, and Secretary, Reverend Yunana Tanimu, and issued after a one-day strategy meeting of notable priests of the area organised by the association and held at the Throneroom Trust Ministry, Kafanchan.

The communiqué, which was read during the 20th Southern Kaduna Prayer Summit, had its theme as “A Jerusalem Council,” was to strate-gise the direction and salvation of the people of Southern Kaduna.

The communiqué condemned, in strong terms, the persecution of Chris-tians in Northern Nigeria in general, and Southern Kaduna in particular, and resolves to investigate and get to the bottom of the conflict and bring forth solutions.

It also described the balkanisation of chiefdoms by the current admin-istration of Kaduna State as a matter of serious concern.

The communiqué, in addition, noted with dismay that traditional rulers were no longer allowed to meet and discuss issues affecting the welfare of their people and also dialogue on issues effecting them in the zone.

While acknowledging that the church has always been the bedrock of Southern Kaduna people, bringing hope and respite in times of crisis, the communiqué noted that the problems in the land are rooted within the people and advises the people to work hard to eradicate ignorance amongst them.

As part of its recommendations, the communiqué calls on the people of Southern Kaduna to rise and protect their God-given land from those who want to take it by force as they have no new land to go to.

It urged the Fulanis who have been living in peace in their previous set-tlements in Southern Kaduna to return and work with the locals to keep the peace in the land.

The communiqué maintained that, henceforth, Ardos have no business in the composition of the traditional councils in Southern Kaduna as it is the case with other tribes in other parts of the North.

It, however, called on the federal and state governments to come up with a national policy as to representations in local governments and traditional institutions that will be acceptable by all as an alternative.

The association also appealed to the federal and state governments to find enduring solutions to the Fulani youth restiveness.